Meet Laurel Hilliard
Owner of Sit. Stay. Play! LLC
Laurel Hilliard grew up in the Richmond Area from the age of 3. From a young age she knew she wanted to work with animals. While in high school she attended the first year of Hermitage Technical Center's Veterinary Science program. She served as the Class President and received the Most Outstanding Student in a Technical Program award. Her first job was at a local veterinary clinic where she worked a total of 10 years. Her experience included small, large, and exotic animals.
Laurel studied Biology with a pre-veterinary track at Virginia Commonwealth University. While at VCU she served as the President and Secretary of the Pre-Veterinary Club. She was also in the top 1% of her class while attending courses at VCU. Laurel then went on to study veterinary technology through Purdue University. At Purdue University she was in the top 1% of her class and was a member of the National Honor Society, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and the Golden Key International Honor Society.
Laurel also embarked on several exotic animal internships. First she attended the zoological school at Cat Tales Zoological Park in Spokane, Washington where she worked with over 40 large cats, including tigers, lions, cougars, jaguars, and bobcats. Laurel then went on to an internship at Yellowstone Bear World in Rexburg Idaho. At this facility she had the opportunity to work with over 60 black bears and grizzlies as well as elk, bison, and wolves. Lastly she studied animal behavior and training at Dolphin Research Center in Marathon, Florida.
